Support your liver and gut health
How are you feeling after reading part 1? Perhaps a mix of emotions? That’s okay! It’s normal to feel angry, overwhelmed, and maybe even relieved that you could have some answers to your symptoms.
Wherever you’re at let’s dive into how you can better support your body, specifically your gut and liver health. In my coaching practice, I focus on bio-individuality, I’m ALWAYS preaching that everyone is different, so what works for me may not work for you and what works for you may not work for others. That is why it is so important to learn about yourself, your body, the signals it sends you, common symptoms, triggers, etc. Instead of focusing on the next diet, TikTok trend, or whatever your co-worker is doing, it’s best to tune into your bio-individuality. This will allow you to feel more empowered moving forward and make living a healthier lifestyle much easier.
In part one, after listing out all the common sources that contribute to the liver burden, I mentioned to start by focusing on bowel movements, sweating, optimizing nutrients, avoiding toxins, and removing food allergens. Taking it day by day and first becoming aware of your lifestyle and what could be causing a burden on your liver and gut health!
Were you able to reflect and establish mindfulness surrounding your common exposures? What were some of common ones for you?
Once you’ve identified that, the next step is to see where you can either eliminate, decrease, or make healthy swaps. For example, if you are using a common household product that is toxic, can you plan to swap it with a less harmful product next time you’re shopping?
What about foods? Are you consuming a lot of seed oils and refined grains, if yes (no shame or judgement here), is there a food swap you can make or a way to decrease how much you’re consuming?
Notice that I didn’t say completely cut out of your diet and start restricting yourself, the way I teach my clients to make better choices is by crowding out vs. cutting out.
Having awareness is truly the first step and taking it day by day, product by product, ingredient by ingredient! For me, it started with swapping food items and ingredients in my pantry, then I purchased a water filter and a reusable water bottle to eliminate plastic and tap water, then I took a look at household products I was using and began swapping them, next was coming off birth control, removing my amalgam fillings, and decreasing the amount of caffeine and alcohol I was consuming! I would like to remind you that this was over at least 3 years and I’m still working on it to this day!! I will probably get another tattoo and I will likely consume a refined grain again but it’s not about finding perfection. Rather, it’s about finding balance and feeling empowered to support your body through healthy habits.
So as you can see, it is more about slowly making the small changes that leave a lasting impact. As you make these lifestyle changes and implement small habits along the way you start to notice the transformation!
I’ve experienced a decrease in inflammation, i’m feeling less puffy and bloated, I have less brain fog, more energy, my acne is lessening, I rarely ever get pain or headaches, my PMS symptoms are minimal, and i’m truly intune with my body!
I want to mention this is not medical advice and solely knowledge I’ve gained from my schooling and personal experience. It’s always best to consult your doctor if you’re making changes and if you’d like further support through this process, set up a 45-minute free health consultation with me!
Holistic ways you can begin to support your gut and liver health:
Castor oil liver packs- apply castor oil over your liver and cover with an organic unbleached cotton cloth. Even better if you’d like to place a heating pack on top of that for 20 minutes.
Using the sauna to sweat out toxins and open detox pathways
Incorporating a heavy metal detox smoothie that contains cilantro, wild organic blueberries, spirulina, chlorella, orange juice, and water
Incorporating organic bone broth into your diet- my favorite is kettle fire!
Finding a mindful, stress-reducing practice like meditation, yoga, stretching, or daily walks
Decreasing your anger and stress by implementing shaking or tapping techniques to help manage stress, anxiety, and big emotions
Incorporating cold pressed juices with celery, beets, cilantro, ginger, lemon, cucumber, and/or parsley
Waking up and exposing your eyes to sunlight within a half hour for at least ten minutes
Incorporating digestive enzymes with meals to help aid digestion, especially when you’re eating foods that could be irritating to your gut
Chewing your food 20-30 times and putting your fork down between bites
Decreasing the amount of liquid you consume before, during, and after meals
Balancing blood sugar- there are a few ways you can do this! I highly recommend reading the book Glucose Revolution by Jessie Inchauspe. One of her techniques to balance blood sugar is by eating your food in a specific order. Starting with greens and veggies on your plate, then the protein and fats, then ending the meal by eating the carbs!
This is a good starting list for you but that doesn't mean you need to start doing all the things because that isn’t realistic. Pick or two of the recommendations from above and plan to incorporate them into your daily routine! For example, that could look like going on a 10-minute walk in the morning and then having a heavy metal detox smoothie.
These habits cause a ripple effect when you’re also making the lifestyle changes but again, I want to remind you that it takes consistency and patience with yourself.
Okay, time for a deep breath!!
I understand this information can be a lot and I know when i’m overwhelmed I kind of just freeze and don’t take any steps forward. Take this information and just sit with it for the day, plan a habit or two that you could incorporate tomorrow.
I love a good reflection question, so to end this blog i’m going to leave you with one (or three lol). Reflection questions help you grow and adapt with change, so get out a journal or a planner, open your notes app and jot it down to answer when you’re ready.
What have you realized about your priorities at this time in your life? What are you committed to doing and what do you think the next step should be?